The war has reached its 112th day. Maximum caution is required, but there are increasingly persistent rumors that there may be a glimmer of hope for a possible ceasefire in Gaza in connection with the release of Israeli hostages. According to the news on the website of the authoritative progressive Israeli newspaper yesterday HaaretzIsrael and Hamas are said to be close to a basic agreement: The agreement would provide for a 35-day pause in hostilities and the release of Palestinian prisoners. To facilitate agreement according to agreement Washington PostUS President Joe Biden decided to send CIA director William Burns to meet with senior officials of Israel, Egypt and Qatar.
The main unresolved question is whether Hamas will include a full ceasefire in the agreement, a demand that Israel now rejects. According to authoritative observers, a ceasefire is the real basis for de-escalation of the conflict.
Qatar’s role
US State Department deputy spokesman Vedant Patel said in a statement recently that “Qatar has been a fundamental, integral and irreplaceable regional partner” for the US since the conflict between Israel and Hamas began on October 7. Patel’s comment came at a press conference in response to a question about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calling Qatar’s role in mediation efforts to secure the return of Israeli hostages in the Gaza Strip “problematic.”
Qatar and Egypt, alongside the United States, were the two key mediators between Israel and Hamas, making possible the first fragile ceasefire and the release of dozens of hostages in November. However, in recent days, tensions between Qatar and Benjamin Netanyahu have risen to unprecedented levels after the release of an audio recording in which the Israeli prime minister criticized Doha for describing its role as a mediator in a meeting with the families of the hostages. small emirate. Qatar said it was “shocked” by the remarks attributed to Netanyahu. So what did the Israeli prime minister actually say?
Qatar and Hamas: Registration at the center of debate
A few days ago, Israeli television broadcast a recording of Netanyahu’s conversation with the hostages’ families: “You won’t hear me thank Qatar. They have power because they finance it.” [Hamas]”, he adds.”Because for me it is not fundamentally different from the UN or the Red Cross, and in a way it is even more problematic: I have no illusions about them. But right now I’m willing to use any actor to help me bring it home [gli ostaggi]”the prime minister added.
THEQatar said the comments were “irresponsible” if true but “not surprising”. The tiny Gulf Emirate has had high-level contacts with Israel since the 1990s but has never formally established diplomatic relations. Qatar has long supported the Palestinian cause and hosts the political leaders of Hamas, which is considered a terrorist organization by Israel, Britain, the United States and other countries. Doha hHundreds of millions of dollars in aid have also been provided to Gaza, which has been under a crippling blockade by Israel and Egypt since 2006, when Hamas won the parliamentary elections. The blockade was further tightened the following year, when Hamas overthrew the Palestinian Authority and strengthened its power in Gaza.
Since 2018, Israeli governments have allowed Qatar to pay the salaries of tens of thousands of civil servants in the Gaza government, provide financial support to the poorest families and finance the distribution of fuel to the region’s only power plant. Qatar insists the financing has always been for civilian and humanitarian purposes only. THESome critics in Israel have warned that this helps Hamas stay in power and finance its military activities.
Following cross-border attacks in southern Israel on October 7, in which nearly 1,300 people were killed and 250 were sent to Gaza as hostages, Qatar rejected accusations that it had encouraged payments to strengthen Hamas as a “big lie”. Expenses of the Palestinian Authority.
Qatar strengthened ties with Hamas to force a week-long pause in fighting in late November; During this time, 105 Israeli and foreign hostages were released in exchange for approximately 240 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons. The Emirate has been trying to broker a new ceasefire for weeks as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza worsens and the Israeli government is under increasing domestic pressure to do everything it can to secure the release of hostages remaining in the Strip.
Hospitals in Gaza without food, anesthesia and painkillers
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant claims that “Hamas is collapsing in the tunnels it dug, and the shelters it thought were safe have turned into traps.” At the meeting with the troops engaged in the systematic destruction of the tunnels in Gaza, Gallant stated that the war would continue for a long time and said, “But Hamas has no reserves, it does not know where to find weapons and ammunition, it is not possible.” Treating the wounded: illegal”.
Al Jazeera Khan reported that the Nasser hospital in Younis had run out of food, anesthetics and painkillers. “The health and humanitarian situation in the hospital is extremely catastrophic. According to Save the Children, at least 11,500 children have been killed in Gaza since October 7. From 7 OctoberMore than 25,000 people have been killed in the Strip, according to the Hamas-led Ministry of Health.
Meanwhile, people continue to die. Arab broadcaster Al Jazeera reported that at least 11 people were killed in an Israeli airstrike that hit a house in the Nuseyrat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip this evening. Among the victims was a prominent Palestinian journalist and some members of his family.
Source: Today IT
Karen Clayton is a seasoned journalist and author at The Nation Update, with a focus on world news and current events. She has a background in international relations, which gives her a deep understanding of the political, economic and social factors that shape the global landscape. She writes about a wide range of topics, including conflicts, political upheavals, and economic trends, as well as humanitarian crisis and human rights issues.
